Christmas Themed Exit Slips~ It's a Freebie!

Exit slips give students a chance to use their writing skills and it gets them reflecting on what they have learned.   They also help YOU evaluate what students need help on, or let you know if they are ready to go on. 

You may want to provide a question or a prompt for students to answer.  Here are a few prompts you may want to consider:

1.  One thing I learned today was...
2.  Here is how I can use what I learned today.
3.  Write down two differences between vertebrates and invertebrates and two similarities.
4.  Two things that I learned and one quesion I still have.

Click HERE to download from my TpT store.

Tis' the Season for Singing

I am not a singer, but when it comes to Christmas songs I can't help myself!  As it gets closer to Christmas, the singing in my classroom begins to get a little loud.  Inspired by the cheerful voices, I have a freebie for you! With a little movement, students get to vote on their favorite Christmas song by moving to one of four corners, share with classmates why a song is their favorite, and then graph the results.  It's sure to be a hit!

Click HERE to download this freebie from my TpT store.

You Are My Sunshine!

Thank you to A Teacher's Treasure for brining some sunshine to my day by awarding me with the Sunshine Award.

Here are the rules for accepting this award:
1. Thank the person who gave this award and write a post about it.
2. Answer the following questions below.
3. And pass the award to 10~12 fabulous bloggers, link their blogs and let them know you awarded them.

Here are my answers:

• Favorite color? Brown/Blue 
• Favorite animal? My Yorkipoo, Buster
• Favorite number? 8
• Favorite drink? Diet Dr. Pepper
• Facebook or Twitter? Facebook
• Your passion?  Being a mom and wife, teaching, blogging
• Giving or getting presents? Giving by far!
• Favorite day? The day my daughter was born

Now I have to choose who to pass this award to.  Wow, that is a hard one!

1.  Kid's Reading Activities ( A brand new, absolutely adorable blog!)

2.  Rainbow's Within Reach (Debbie, can bring sunshine to anyone!)

3.  Terri's Teaching Treasures

4.  Classroom Magic

5.  Technically Invisible

6.  Oh' Boy Fourth Grade

7.  Runde's Room

8.  3rd Grade Bookworm

9.  Life in 4B

10.  Globicate

This is just a small handful of blogs I follow.  It is great to be connected with so many wonderful teachers around the world. 

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Favorite Thanksgiving Picture Book

Thank you Sarah, by Laurie Halse Anderson is one of my favorite Thanksgiving reads.  Students learn how one bold, brave, stubborn, and smart woman saved Thanksgiving.  I created a few activities to go along with my favorite book.  Students identify character traits, cause and effect relationships, and write a friendly letter.  You can download it for FREE as my Thanksgiving gift to you!

Click HERE to download from my TpT store.

Veteran's Day Freebie

Looking for something for your students to do for Veteran's Day?  This freebie lets students show what Veteran's Day means to them by writing an acrostic poem.

Click HERE to download.

Currently November

I have seen this fun idea for a couple of months from Oh' Boy 4th Grade, and I'm finally jumping in.  Here is what I'm currently doing in November!

Linky Party for Cancer Awareness

Six letters, that’s it, which makes one of the most feared words CANCER. We have all spoke the word, more than likely known someone who has owned the word, and if you are one of the unlucky, you may have the word. 
 

Here is MY story:

I am a 33-year-old wife, mother, daughter, sister, aunt, friend, teacher, you name it. I encompass many roles. For the second time in two years I have been told I have cancer. Are you ready for the crazy part? Its cancer of the tongue, yes you read it right, tongue. I have baffled doctors. People like me don't get a diagnosis like this. I don't smoke, never have. I'm certainly not even close to 60-years-old. You hear of all kinds of cancers, they are all over the spectrum. Oh, but not my kind! When I tell people my story, I get the perplexed look, the questions, and I've never heard of such a thing. But it's true, not once but twice. The first time was not a joy, but I was told that the likeliness of a reoccurrence was slim if not impossible. Well, this one is for the doctors! You were wrong! Maybe the stubbornness runs in my blood. Maybe I'm the one who was meant to prove them wrong :)! So, yes it is rare but nonetheless I have cancer again.

Am I scared? You betcha! Where will I go from here? Not, sure. It's early but all I know is nothing will get in my way! What about my girl?  How will she deal with this? Will I miss much in her life? Nope, she'll be just fine. Besides, we have the rest of our lives to make up for this little glitch. What about my husband? He is my rock, the one who will hold my hand the entire way without a doubt! What about my faith? This may be just what I needed, a kick in the behind to rekindle that faith. Is this a bump in the road, or a flat out block? Oh, its definitely a bump, not the first, and as we all know not the last. Do you talk to me about it? You better! It is not going to define me, I'm not going to dwell, but to ignore it makes it seem like you are afraid it will upset me.

So right now it seems I have it all figured out. I think right now, it's what is keeping me going. I look like I'm strong and sound like I'm strong, but deep down the uncertainty can be overwhelming. I can't let that get to me right now. I may not always be this strong, but it's what I've got RIGHT NOW!

So here is a party for all those who have fought, survived, known a loved one with cancer, or simply want to join in celebrating the four letter word
L-I-F-E.

The only stipulation for this linky party is to link-up and if you wish, you may grab the lavender ribbon button to represent your support for cancer awareness!

Here is to you!